Many of us love to acquire and raise ornamental birds of all kinds to add a certain beauty, to hear them sing or for other purposes, and these birds are divided into several types, including sparrows and parrots.
The basics of raising ornamental birds
1- Providing the right place (cage)
A spacious cage must be provided so that the bird’s movement is not restricted, and the cage must be strong and made of a material that is not harmful to the bird and ensures its safety as well as easy cleaning, and it must be of good height for birds with long wings or tails.
2- Providing food and water
Large pots should be used to provide food and water, so that the bird can easily approach them, and it is worth noting that it is not necessary to place these pots near the nest to force the bird to move between the times of eating food and water. It is also important to provide balanced amounts of food, and they can be given a small amount of fresh fruit and vegetables 3 times a week with daily replenishment of water.
3- Providing the right atmosphere
– Temperature: Healthy birds can tolerate ambient temperatures, but sudden changes in temperature can be a potential threat to sick or weakened birds.
– Humidity: Pet birds can adapt to a wide range of humidity levels, although birds from sub-tropical climates may sometimes require more humidity.
– Light and fresh air: Ornamental birds love fresh air as well as indirect sunlight.
Some tips for ornamental bird breeders
1- Choosing the right time for mating, which coincides with the winter season for most types of birds, except for the canary bird, which mates in the spring.
2- The breeder should not move the cage unless necessary so as not to cause anxiety to the bird at this important time.
3- Change some types of food and give him eggshells (ground) or limestone, as they contain a high percentage of calcium, which the bird needs in this period.
4- Leaving the female to lie on the eggs for a period ranging from 22 to 24 days, and the increase in duration is due to the cold weather.
5- The breeder must transfer the chicks to another cage after 30 to 40 days, until the mother has finished feeding them and make sure they are able to eat on their own.
6- Pay attention to the cleanliness of the cage and mating houses and wash the floor with soap and water once a month.
7- When buying new birds, separate them from old birds immediately after purchase for at least 14 days to make sure they are free of diseases and put the infected birds in another cage.
8- Avoid raising dust near the birds to protect them from respiratory infection, conjunctivitis and other diseases, as well as avoid putting newspapers at the bottom of the cage and replacing them with white paper or leaving them naked for fear of poisoning with newspaper ink.
9 – Provide good ventilation to get rid of carbon dioxide, taking into account that the birds are not exposed to air currents.
10- Give the necessary and necessary immunisations under the supervision of a veterinarian.
Reasons for not singing
1- Failure to come out of the process of feather removal (clipping) successfully, which is mainly caused by neglecting the bird at this important stage in its life and not providing it with comfort, calm and good nutrition.
2- Diseases, including parasitic diseases (outbreaks).
3- Permanent constipation of the bird.
4- Psychological comfort, where you must provide a favourable atmosphere for the bird and not monitor it too much.
5- Unsuitable nutrition, where one or two types of seeds are relied upon, as well as neglecting to provide fruit, water bath and sunshine.
6- Not sleeping well, as the nature of songbirds is to sleep at sunset and wake up at sunrise.
7- Unsuitable place, for example if we put it in a closed, narrow, low or dark place that does not reach sunlight.
8- Falling cage, where we find the bird refrains from singing and this varies from one bird to another and the duration of the return to singing again.
9- Attacking animals: Especially cats and birds of prey, as this causes the bird to refrain from tweeting for a long time (Gage and Duerr 2007).
Pro.Dr. Latif Ibrahim Kazim
Head of Poultry and Fish Diseases Branch
